31 arrested in sexual predator sting

Sarasota County Sheriff Tom Knight says the men were arrested when they showed up to have sex with what they thought were minors they had been conversing with online.

By DALE WHITE

They thought they were about to have sex with minors they had been conversing with over the Internet.

Instead, the 31 men quickly discovered their rendezvous in Sarasota County were actually with undercover detectives. Many of them screamed, cried and pleaded as they were subdued, handcuffed and told they were being arrested as suspected online sexual predators.

But the team of investigators that conducted Operation Intercept were not inclined to be lenient.

"They're screaming and saying they're sorry," Sarasota County Sheriff Tom Knight said at a news conference Monday where he showed video clips of several of the arrests made during an extensive sting dubbed Operation Intercept.

Had those defendants done what they intended to do, real youngsters would have been victimized, Knight said.

In a first-of-its-kind collaboration, the Sheriff's Office, Sarasota Police, Venice Police, North Port Police, state prosecutors, the Manatee County Sheriff's Office, U.S. Homeland Security and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement participated in a united effort to expose offenders who use the Internet to lure and victimize minors.

Undercover detectives, posing online as girls and boys of varying ages, and in some cases parents offering up their minor children for sex, say they conversed with the defendants, who thought they had coaxed children and teenagers into having sex.

During the 6-day sting that ended Saturday, men came from virtually every corner of Sarasota County and from across Southwest Florida to meet their intended victims at a residence where detectives awaited them.

The suspects, ranging in age from 22 to 62, came from "all walks of life," Knight said.

Knight noted that the arrested men included Shawn Gray, 45, a Miami attorney and a lieutenant commander with the U.S. Coast Guard Judge Advocate General Corps, and Carlos Martinez, 41, of Cape Coral, who works in information technology at the Lee County Courthouse.

One suspect — Matthew Weaver, 21, of Fort Myers — brought a 4-year-old with him to the undisclosed location where he was arrested.

More arrests are possible, Knight said. Some suspects failed to show up for their appointments with their intended victims and remain under investigation.

The Sheriff's Office is initiating forfeiture proceedings for many of the vehicles the suspects were driving.

Assistant State Attorney Ed Brodsky said the charges filed against the men could lead to prison sentences of up to 20 years.

"I'm really saddened by it but I'm mostly angry," Sarasota Police Chief Mikel Hollaway said. "You can't help, being a parent, being sad and angry at the same time."

Hollaway and Knight urged parents to make sure they know how their children are using technology to communicate with others, especially strangers. If they need help understanding that technology, the Sheriff's Office or the police departments can provide that help, they said.